Penn Praxis Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
752974931
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Philadelphia, PA, USA
Phone
2155138719
Rating
71
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Nonmonetary Support N.E.C.

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$684,806
Expenses
$1,292,591
Assets
$196,603
Liabilities
$-223,206

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • MARK DINGFIELD (DIRECTOR): $784,303 total reported compensation
  • FREDERICK STEINER (CHAIRPERSON): $730,030 total reported compensation
  • WENDELL PRITCHETT (DIRECTOR): $595,051 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Penn praxis serves to further the mission of the stuart weitzman school of design in the fields of architecture, planning, landscape architecture, community development, fine art and historic preservation. Penn praxis is a vehicle for carrying out practical or applied projects for external clients. Penn praxis serves to provide opportunities for student and faculty education and development, strengthen community ties, and provide service to the community.

What it reported doing in 2024

Statement of program service accomplishments penn praxis operates to support the charitable, scientific and educational purposes of the trustees of the university of Pennsylvania ("penn"). The focus of penn praxis' activities are to broaden and enrich penn's academic experience and to further the mission of the stuart weitzman school of design in the fields of architecture, planning, landscape architecture, community development, fine art and historic preservation. In addition, penn praxis provides opportunities for student and faculty education and development, strengthens community ties, and provides services to the community. In this regard, the objectives of penn praxis include: offering increased and enhanced educational opportunities for faculty and students to test ideas and apply theories through practical projects; providing the opportunity for students to work collaboratively with faculty, while offering financial support for students during their studies; encouraging joint projects by faculty across the various disciplines of the stuart weitzman school of design, as well as promoting community outreach and providing assistance to members of the community who do not have access to normal professional services or who are unable to afford the full cost of those services. In addition, the involvement of penn administrators and faculty with penn praxis is expected to result in the development of an enhanced curriculum and teaching methods. As part of its activities, penn praxis operates to select and manage projects in the fields of architecture, planning, landscape architecture, community development, fine art, and historic preservation. Projects may come through faculty members, students, or be proposed by community clients in need of services.

Operating model

Revenue model
Affiliate-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions from related organizations.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and a relatively small share of voting board members are independent.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 86
  • Transparency & Controls: 65
  • Accountability: 74
  • Sustainability: 3
  • Growth: 40

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 90%; rating input score 90
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 55.6%; rating input score 56; 12th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -88.8%; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.15; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: Limited
  • Officer compensation ratio: 29.3%; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 5.1% per year; rating input score 100; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -7.5% per year; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -8.7% per year; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 90% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 5 of 9 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $784K · 11 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 14 of 14 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Related organizations: 86 filed related-organization links
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 56/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 1/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 7/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 7/100.